Year 3
Welcome to the Summer Term from Mrs Thursby!
I can't believe that the Summer Term has arrived so quickly! This final term in Year 3 is all about the importance of technology, design and scientific discoveries and how they've shaped our modern world. Our topic is called Planes, Trains and Automobiles and it promises to be full of exploration as scientists and engineers. There will be lots of hands on practical making as well as lots of opportunities to learn about the history of some very important forms of transport. I can't wait to see what wonderful creations and designs you come up with in our final term together! You never know...this topic might even spark an interest of your own that goes on to shape your future!
Learning a poem off by heart!
We have just been introduced to the classic poem called From a Railway Carriage by Robert Louis Stevenson. We loved looking at the rhythm of the poem and spent time looking at the vocabulary we hadn't met before. We have started to work on our reading fluency of this poem in our reading lessons and hope to perform it for an audience!
Watch the video below to help with practising this wonderful poem. Remember to think about your 6P's!
MUSIC IN TERM 5
Year 3 are loving their Music this term. Here is a link to a warm up song we have recently learned so you can practise it at home!
OUR SUMMER TERM CLASS READER
Once we have finished Stig of the Dump, we will be reading a book by the author Hannah Gold called The Last Bear. It is an incredible book and I know you're going to love its message and the journey of the main character. When I read this book, I went through several emotions but most of all I didn't want to put it down!!!
Background knowledge for our class reader
We all know how important background knowledge is when we are starting a brand new book. I have found a video with Hannah Gold telling us a little about the book and how she came to carry our research that helped her with the book. Have a look and start getting excited about this book! I can't wait to start reading it to you!
Background knowledge about Polar Bears
Below are some links to websites that will help you learn all you need to know about these wonderful creatures. Have fun finding out about them.
Watch this video to further your knowledge!
Here's a flavour of what's to come in our topic!
This video shows you how our Stone Age topic links with Planes Trains and Automobiles as it tells us about the invention of the wheel. Watch this video and get started on our topic!
Animated Timeline!
This video will help you understand how transport has evolved over time.
The History of Flight
We will be learning all about the history of flight and how things have changed since the very first invention. What do you know about the very first time someone was able to travel by air?
BE INSPIRED BY THIS BOOK!
Without giving too much away, this very famous person will feature in out topic. This book looks fantastic and will hopefully get you thinking about how artists and designers were inspired to create brand new things!
SUMMER TERM LISTENING TO MUSIC!
One of the pieces of music that we'll be listening to this term is something you might have heard on an advert. Have a listen!
What instruments can you hear?
How does this music make you feel?
Does the music change in tempo?
What images come into your mind when you hear this music?
FANTASTIC FORCES!
For the next few weeks we will be learning all about the science of forces. We will begin with explaining the forces of pushing and pulling to kick start this topic. Watch these videos and think about how you would explain how things move.
This is just the beginning of some exciting hands on practical investigation linked to forces.
Get started with this knowledge organiser about forces!
Learning how to write a Biography
This term in our English lessons, we'll be learning all about the text type of the biography. During this work we will be learning all about the features of this type of text and we'll be reading lots of different examples. Is there a famous person you would like to read all about? Let me know if there is!
Watch the videos to help you begin to understand this text type and very soon we'll be writing our own biographies about some famous people featured in the history of flight.
Understanding our world
Lots of us have been hearing about the situation in Ukraine. We have been naturally asking questions about the news at the moment and as a school community we have already made donations towards the refugee appeal.
Try this story below. It might help you begin to understand some of the things that are going on in our world.
Below is a link for your adults.
This is a link to an article that recommends several book titles that may help your child understand some of the issues that face refugees. I know our children have lots of questions and books are a really sensitive and safe way of opening up conversations about real life events.
Take a Virtual Tour!
Enjoy feeling as though you are right in the middle of a Stone Age cave. Take a look at the paintings on the walls and see what animals you can spot. What do you notice about the colours used in the art work? What do these pictures about life in the Stone Age?
Try this tour of the Lascaux caves.
CAVE ART!
Take a look at our collaborative art project inspired by the history of cave painting in the Stone Age. We loved using charcoal and pastel to create our own cave art. We discovered a lot about what it would have been like to create Art work in the Stone Age period.
ENJOYING ART AT HOME!
Here are lots of resources and ideas for Art activities you can try and enjoy doing at home. I hope you enjoy exploring different techniques and using a range of materials. Remember that Art is wonderful for our well being. It can help us relax too. Have a go!
The Tate Gallery For Kids
The link below takes you to The Tate Kids website which is all about Art and Artists. There are games and quizzes to try as well as lots of Art ideas for you to explore and try. It really is a wonderful place to learn about Art!
Deepen your learning about soil!
Year 3 have loved learning about soil this week. After going on a sensory soil trail, they closely observed soil samples from three different areas of our school grounds. They loved working in small teams and filled in a chart of their observations.
In our lesson we gained knowledge about the three main types of soil and how to find out what type of soil you might have in your garden.
They carried on their learning and found out about the different layers of soil. Using their Art skills, they loved creating their own diagrams displaying their new found knowledge.
Do you want to be creative at home? Watch this video and show your knowledge through using your Art skills!
Create your own soil layers!
Do you have some ingredients at home to help you learn about the layers of soil? Watch this video with a great idea to help you understand! You'll love it!
Books to read!
What do you think about this book? It looks a great way to learn all about soil and other fascinating things under our feet!
Do you like books about Science?
Year 3 love Science! Try looking at the link below. There may be some books you would like to read. Let me know if there are any you'd like for our classroom.
CELEBRATING WORLD BOOK DAY!
Take a look at how Year 3 celebrated World Book Day. We created our own magic wands linked to our theme All things Magic. We enjoyed bringing in a book we were enjoying at home and made our own class book blanket. We finished off the day with a snuggly book time, making dens under tables and enjoying reading together.
All about Mary Anning
Year 3 loved finding out all about Mary Anning and how fossils were significant in her life and work. The story Stone Girl Bone Girl was listened to as a hook into our practical lesson on making bread fossils.
Watch the video below and enjoy the story again!
Further your knowledge about Mary Anning!
Learning all about fossilisation!
Year 3 were very excited to learn about fossilisation using bread, peanut butter, jam and sweets. The first layer of bread was the sea bed, the sweets were the creatures, the jam and peanut butter were the sediments and the slices of bread were the layers. They loved sitting on the bread to create the pressure and then placed their bread under several heavy books for the weekend. This is a great example of hands on learning that will stick with them! Look at these photos and take note of the smiles!!!
Further your knowledge!
Use the link below and become an expert on fossils!
ENJOY!!!
SKETCH BOOK UPDATE
Year 3 are continuing to work hard on their sketch books this term. Mrs Thursby has begun her own sketch book so that the children can learn how to organise their pages and are hopefully inspired to create their own ideas. We have begun Term 4 with some Artist Study pages.
Part 1 of our Fossil Art Project!
We learned all about the life and work of the artist Edward Lear. He began as an artist at the age of 15 and later became better known for being a poet. He loved to write limericks. We studied his fossil art work as inspiration for our own fossil print later in the term. Year 3 loved exploring his life and creating their own sketch book pages.
Part 2 of our Fossil Project
We designed our own fossil print after investigating and exploring a wide range of designs. Once our design was finalised, we experimented with polystyrene tiles and different colours. Here are photographs of our final outcome!
Help with Short Division
We are currently learning the method of short division. Here's a video to remind you how to do this method so you can practise at home if you want to improve your skills.
Year 3 Box - a - cise!
Take a look at our first week of boxing. Year 3 did brilliantly and this is certainly a great way to keep fit! All the children had very red faces when they'd finished their session!
Our latest Topic work...
This week we have really enjoyed a lesson exploring the mystery of Stone Henge. Year 3 were fascinated by reading four different theories about why it was built in the first place. We shared some amazing ideas and the children were able to explain which theory they believed was most likely. The video below was really useful and helped us to get a real feel for this historic monument. What fantastic detectives Year 3 were!
Use the video to help with your knowledge about Stone Henge.
SPRING TERM BOOK OF BOOKS!
Take a look at our latest reading in Year 3's Book of Books this term. We have loved the books we've been studying. These pages below help us to talk about key moments of our reading journey this term.
Mrs Thursby is currently reading...
Check out what I am reading during the Spring Term. This display is outside my classroom so make sure you take a look as you walk past. Please come and talk to me about what you are reading at the moment and we can have a lovely conversation!
Our latest English work!
At the moment we have just started a narrative unit linked to the book Stone Age Boy. This is an excellent story but is also helping us to understand what life was like during the Stone Age. Try this video of the story and it will help you learn the sequence of events for when we write our own version! Watch out for examples of our slow writing technique linked to this book. Year 3 are becoming story writers and it's very exciting!
SUPER SENTENCE STACKERS!
Year 3 are learning how to think like writers using a sentence stacker method. Mrs Thursby models how to generate ideas for vocabulary on our Thinking Page and then how to craft sentences that will hook the reader in and keep them interested. We use a different success criteria for each stack of sentences and it really helps to focus on high quality sentence construction.
Year 3 are stepping up to the challenge of this way of working. They are being encouraged to get their own special writing book at home and write for pleasure using this technique. They are so excited to write their next plot point and Mrs Thursby can't wait to mark their work!
An inspirational book is a hook into our Science!
The book called The Pebble in my pocket is a great way to learn about rocks. Whilst being introduced to some fantastic scientific vocabulary, this book also takes you on the journey of a pebble. We are using this book to inspire some super learning this week as well as enjoying a wonderful story book with amazing illustrations.
Check out the story on the video below and get a head start to our Science!
The following link gives you our vocabulary book too. This tells you the meaning of the challenging words in the book.
THE ROCK CYCLE WITH STARBURST SWEETS!
What a fun way to learn! We used Starburst sweets to show us how the three different types of rock were formed. The sweets revealed perfectly how a sedimentary rock forms layers over time and heating them up was a brilliant way to understand how heat changes a rock. Have a look at our Science work!
HEATING OUR STARBURST SWEETS!
A Welcome Return for past pupils!
Our whole school were excited to welcome some former pupils back into school to do some hands on practical Science. The children absolutely loved getting stuck in to a variety of experiments such as creating chromatography flowers, magic milk and floating and sinking. Year 3 would like to thank the students for their hard work and for bringing in the microscopes. They were fascinated looking at the different cells! Thank you also from Mrs Thursby for making her feel very old as she fondly remembers teaching you...twice in fact!!!
A WOW DAY WITH ROCKS!
Year 3 thoroughly enjoyed their day with rocks! They were able to begin their science theme this term with lots of hands on learning getting to know all about rocks. They loved getting their hands dirty whilst going on an exciting rock hunt as well as observing and sorting rocks when they got back into the classroom. There was lots of talk and questioning and after doing some research about rocks they were able to have lots of fun painting a rock! This was such a great experience to help them get excited about their Science through this ter. Well done Year 3 and all the adults who made this day possible!
Rock Hunting!
Sorting and observing rocks!
Painting rocks!
We are mastering the 8 times table!
Please try this song at home to help you with your learning whilst getting active at the same time. Remember songs help us to learn facts!
Try the link below to get the song we have been doing in class.
FUN WITH SCIENCE!
We are kick starting our Spring Term with a whole school science experiment all about liquids. This will be fun and practical! We will make scientific predictions, record observations and take measurements before we draw our own conclusions. Without giving too much away...things will get very sticky!!!!!!!!
Try the link below to dome fun scientific experiments at home that'll get you excited about science in your kitchen! Let me know if you try them...I'd love to hear all about it.
We loved getting messy with a Viscosity test!
We were surprised by some of the results in this test! The tomato sauce actually stopped completely!
Finishing our Shadows work from last term.
We explored shadows and why they form. We made our own shadow puppet and investigated what happened to the shadow when we moved the puppet and the torch. We made conclusions about this experiment too. Take a look at the fun we had playing with torches and creating fuzzy and clear shadows.
Year 3 loved this film exploring shadows!
Get started with the Stone Age!
Watch this video to get you thinking about this fascinating period of History!
Here's a song to help you begin...
Learn about Flint Knapping!
WHAT DO YOU NEED TO KNOW?
Use this knowledge organiser to help you understand some of the key vocabulary needed for our topic. Read the key facts and start thinking about the areas you are interested in and would like to research.
READ TO LEARN!
Use these information posters to help you learn. They will get you thinking and help you in our lessons.
INSPIRED BY A BOOK!
Our Science topic for the Spring Term is Rocks and Soil. During this unit of work we will be learning about different types of rocks and their properties. One of the books we will be reading to inspire our thinking is called The Street Beneath My Feet. This book's layout is exciting and will definitely get you asking scientific and geographical questions about what exactly does lie underneath the ground.
Watch this trailer below and you'll be itching to get started on our Science for this term!
BOOKS TO LOOK OUT FOR IN 2022!
Love reading4 kids is a brilliant website that I'm always recommending you to go on. Below is a link to their preview of new books for 2022. Have a read and let me know if there are any books you like the look of and we can get them for our class library.
Remember to keep up to date with their current top ten too!
AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT FOR JANUARY
For January our featured author is Joseph Coelho. He writes wonderful poetry as well as stories and has a variety of fantastic books to explore. One of my favourites is a book called Poems Aloud which encourages you to think about how you perform when reading out loud. Joseph Coelho does this in a very clever but fun way. There are lots of video clips available to inspire you. Take a look!
FEBRUARY-AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT!
For the month of February we are focusing on National Geographic magazines. In these magazines there are a wealth of activities and they do a great job inspiring us to read about the world around us. Reading texts like these really help us with our up to date general knowledge and our understanding of technical vocabulary. These magazines help us with our understanding of new words and facts in such an interesting and fun way!
Let me know if there's a magazine or comic that you would like to see in Year 3's Reading Area.
ARTHUR AND THE GOLDEN ROPE
Year 3 have really enjoyed continuing with this story, which we began just before Christmas. It really is a fantastic narrative linked to the God of Thor. They loved exploring and finding out all about the main character Arthur and his journey to rescue his town.
Enjoy the story below.
Transition Morning!
For one of our tasks we chose a favourite book to bring to Year 3. We created our own class book blanket of all our favourite books. There was a great deal of rich talk about books!
Here are some photos of the new Year 3 enjoying reading together for pleasure!
Year 3's Golden Book
In this section of Year 3's Web page we will feature very special work that has made it into our very special Golden Book. Your work has to be outstanding to be entered and I look forward to writing many entries this year. This book is about showing that you care about your work, going above and beyond and mastering something with true resilience. Remember Do your best so that we as a school can be our best!
OUTSTANDING WORK IN OUR GOLDEN BOOK!
Take a look at this outstanding work describing a dragon. Look out for the personification we have been learning about. Mrs Thursby was thrilled with the quality of the vocabulary. WELL DONE!!!
Wonderful Music Skills!
Have a look at this video which shows one of our class members mastering the cup game we have been working on. After learning the song we tried to use the cups to help us keep the beat of the song I've been to Harlem. This outstanding achievement was entered into our Golden Book. WOW!
IMG_3034.mov
GETTING STARTED WITH OUR TOPIC...
Who were the Vikings?
Find out about the Vikings, who lived in Britain over one thousand years ago. These Norse purate raiders eventually settled in Britain but still explored and travelled widely to trade all around the world. Their language is the origin for some surprising words, towns and cities too. Do you live in one of them or have one near where you live?
SPOT OUR OWN VICIOUS VIKINGS!
Come and enjoy our topic area of the classroom which is all ready for learning!
Learn historical facts through song!
Year 3 have been finding out about the Anglo-Saxon Kings. Their favourite is Alfred the Great! After reading to learn, they studied a variety of information texts and used their retrieval skills to gain knowledge.
Here is a song to help with their learning. Remember singing facts helps us remember even better!
READING ZONE!
CLASS LIBRARY
In the Year 3 classroom we have a class library with lots of books to choose from. This is where you can borrow books to take home as well as a space to read and enjoy books during the school day. Please remember to record your book title against your name in our reading record book. If you have any favourite authors you would like to see in our class library, please let me know and I'll do my best to find them for you.
There is also a reading graffiti board esepcially for you to write your thoughts and messages about reading or any specific books you have read.
Sit back and enjoy our reading space. There really is nothing better than losing yourself in a book!
BOOK OF BOOKS
This is a very special reading journal that we use to show our reading journey through the year. Look inside and you will find out about the books we have read and enjoyed. Our thoughts and ideas will be displayed as well as the searching questions we will ask about characters and settings. We will keep you posted with how this book is doing through the year. For now...here is our front cover ready for the new academic year!
CLASS READER-AUTUMN TERM
This term our class reader is How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell. Look at this amazing book trailer to get a flavour of what's to come when we start reading!
Something exciting...!
Look at what happened when Year 3 found a mysterious package...
Imagine a world of dragons...
Listen to Cressida Cowell read the prologue to How to Train Your Dragon. We will be using this for some of our reading fluency. It's great to hear the author of the book read aloud! Get some tips for how to read expressively!
ACTIVITY PACK FROM CRESSIDA COWELL
Try some of these activities at home.
READING FOR PLEASURE!
This section is here to support your reading at home and give you inspiration to read for pleasure, try new authors, books and just love reading!
CREATING YOUR OWN READING RIVER
This really helps you realise just how much you read in a short space of time! Look at our wonderful creative reading rivers in Year 3!
Mrs Thursby is currently reading...
At the moment I am reading a really exciting book by P.G.Bell. Check out the author because there are several exciting titles to read as well as this one! I would love to have a conversation with you about this book. Feel free to ask me!
Books I recommend...
AUTHORFY!
The link below takes you to a brilliant website to try. It has some fantastic resources linked to up to date books and videos made by lots of different authors. This is a place you can go to and try reading extracts of books and be inspired to try new books and authors you may not have heard of.
Below are some resources I have downloaded for you but try it for yourself. You will love it!
WRITING FOR PLEASURE ZONE!
Year 3 have learned how to write a MORERAPS poem in class and are now asking to write another version at home! Use the video below to inspire you. Remember get yourself a writer's notebook at home and jot down words you come across. You can write about anything! Remember...good writers notice things around them and jot ideas down for later.
National Poetry Day!
To celebrate National Poetry Day, Mrs Thursby read a variety of poems to Year 3 at the end of the day. They really enjoyed poems by Joseph Coelho and Spike Milligan but their absolute favourite by far was a poem called Chocolate Cake by Michael Rosen. They laughed and laughed and laughed!
Try reading these extracts!
MATHS PRACTICE!!!
One of the hardest parts of our Year 3 Place Value Unit is learning how to place 3 digit numbers on a blank number lines to 100. We have done it in class many times and it is something that woud really benefit from some support at home. Try this game we have been playing and loving in class.
TIMES TABLES ZONE!
LEARNING TABLES WITH A COUNTING STICK!
In Year 3 we will be using the counting stick to really get out tables facts to stick. This method helps us to understand the Maths behind the sequence of numbers and how to use doubling, halving and what we already know to help us.
In Year 2 all children should know their 2's 5's and 10 times tables off by heart. In Year 3, we have to learn the 3 4 and 8 times tables to begin with. Watch the video on the 3 times table to help you get ready for some fun with the counting stick in our classroom this term!
SONGS TO HELP WITH TIMES TABLES!
RECAP X2 X5 X10 -DAILY PRACTICE
PRACTISE YOUR 3 4 AND 8 TIMES TABLES!
WORDS HAVE POWER!
In Year 3 vocabulary is at the heart of everything we do. We will learn a wide range of new vocabulary whilst beginning to understand the meaning of words, how words are made up, spelt and where they come from. The children will become excited about words whatever subject we are covering and I will be introducing them to a site called Word Hippo. This is somewhere they can go to find out about new words they come across at home too. Have a look for yourself and get studying those new words!
ACTIVE SPELLING ZONE!
Each week Year 3 will be learning a different spelling rule. We will be working on these spellings every day so if you wanted to support your child and practise them at home each star provides a list of our focus words. There is no formal test but any consolidation is helpful to embed these spellings. The lists are also very useful to recap any previous learning.
AUTUMN TERM SPELLING
Spring Term Spelling
Summer Term Spelling
FUN WITH SINGING!!!
We are really enjoying our Music in Term 1 and are learning a song called I've been to Harlem. Our challenge is to try and learn the cup game that goes wth it over the next few weeks. The video below might just help you practise at home! Find a plastic cup and have a go!
Year 3 singing a 2 part round
An Amazing Harvest Day!
Year 3 really enjoyed a wonderful day of outdoor learning to celebrate the amazing season of Autumn. They participated in several activities linked to nature and were inspired by the book Leaf Man. They completed a scavenger hunt, identfied all kinds of different leaves, created super art work with leaves and used thier environment to create clay faces and characters. The day finished with a delicious hot chocolate and a reflection of all that they had achieved. Although it rained for some parts of the day this didn't put them off and they loved being in the outdoors!
CLAY FACES!
